Letters, Oct. 22

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/10/2024 (549 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Laundry list

Off the top of my head I can think about $10 billion to $12 billion of various and sundry projects that we need to complete to make our city whole again. So now we want to consider adding rail relocation to the list.

As I see it, here is the list, in no particular order: North End treatment plant, $2-3 billion; Peguis Trail extension, $500 million; twinning of inner city sewage system and replace failing cast iron pipes $2 billion (and that may be light); repair existing roadways as budget requires over the next 10 years with inflation factored in, $2 billion; Kenaston Boulevard widening, bridge work and improvements, an estimated $750 million; grade separation and interchanges on the South Perimeter at Oak Bluff and St. Anne’s Road, $500 million (the province will pay for one); replacing aging community clubs and swimming pools, and/or making major improvements (Steinbach and other small cities and towns have superior facilities than Winnipeg), $200 million if we are serious about making improvements; rail re-location, cost unknown; light rail or rapid transit, cost unknown.

One thing I am sure about, as I have lived in Winnipeg since 1968, is that we were left behind by our sister cities in Alberta that are now twice our size and have the resources to do what needs be done.

We have champagne tastes, we want to improve our city and so we will need to get behind the improvement of the business climate, so we will have to add to our beer income. We will need city bonds that yield two to three per cent, but it will take the two upper levels of government to allow city bonds to be sold.

The interest would be non-taxable to the bond holder.

We are in a time of tight money supply and the citizens of Winnipeg hold the key to finance the city’s future.

Peter Kaufmann, former city councillor

Winnipeg

Work together

Gage Haubrich’s op-ed Taxing home heating (Oct. 15) is so full of misrepresentations that it can only have been intended to deceive and alarm.

His comments, as clearly shown by subsequent letters to the editor (“Carbon tax will help,” Dave Schwartz, Oct. 16, “Disingenuous on tax,” Brian Dyck and Robert Roehle, Oct. 17), are absolutely inaccurate.

He joins with Pierre Poilievre in unconscionable fearmongering at a time of great crisis in our country and in the world.

There was a time in Canadian history when the business sector and politicians from all parties worked together to address national emergencies.

During the Second World War, all political parties joined in a wartime cabinet to bring an end to the war as soon as humanly possible.

During the 1930s, when farm land was blowing away, the government brought in legislation to deal with the crisis — the Prairie Farm Rehabilitation Act. Comprehensive and far-reaching programs were established to deal with this crisis and it worked.

I call on the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, the Conservative Party of Canada and specifically Poilievre to stop spreading disinformation about the crisis before us and to openly and honestly collaborate with all political parties to give all Canadians the leadership we deserve to respond quickly and effectively.

Bill Martin

Gimli

Don’t walk

With the changes to Portage and Main and pedestrian traffic soon to be, I couldn’t help notice the disregard pedestrians have for traffic signals on my morning drive through the downtown area.

My understanding is once the “walk” signal turns red, you can’t enter the intersection and must clear the road.

At every intersection with pedestrians, someone began crossing after the sign said not to. This is no exaggeration, as once my wife and I started to pay attention, it became clear this is the norm.

As motorists, we accept the rules of the road for everyone’s safety, as should cyclists and pedestrians. Unless the city has a plan to educate pedestrians and provide enforcement of the law, Portage and Main will be bedlam.

Honolulu has a wonderful multi-directional crossing at major downtown intersections that moves pedestrians and traffic well without incident. The signals are respected by all.

I hope the city has a better plan, besides letting pedestrians run wild as they do now.

Bill Allan

Winnipeg

Opportunity knocks

Re: Vandal deals blow to Liberals, won’t run in next election (Oct. 17).

Liberals are abandoning ship. In the U.S., the Democrats chose the second in command, who is a woman, to lead them into the election when they were in trouble. I suggest that Justin Trudeau do likewise.

Chrystia Freeland is minister of finance and deputy prime minister.

If Trudeau steps aside, he will give Canada only our second female prime minister, and he will go down in history as a hero.

If he insists on leading the Liberals into the next federal election, the writing is on the wall.

Trudeau will find out in a couple of weeks if this plan works for the Democrats southside.

Richard North

Winnipeg

Failing upwards?

Re: Singh slams Poilievre for lacking top security clearance (Oct. 18)

Has the possibility occurred to anyone else that the reason Pierre Poilievre does not have top-level security clearance is that he might fail to get the approval if he applied?

Allison Atkey

Gimli

The doctor is in

Thank you for your article about QDoc (Prescription for success, Oct. 17)

I had been struggling with a non-life-threatening condition and couldn’t get in to see my family physician for two weeks. I created an account with QDoc, was seen by a physician, diagnosed, and had a prescription for medication faxed to my pharmacy all within 30 minutes. All this and still in my jammies!

I truly believe this type of clinic may be a real game changer to alleviate some of the pressure on the broken medical system.

Bobbie Enns

Winnipeg

Recreational evil

Re: Unwelcome, but not entirely unexpected, editorial (Oct. 18)

Rosa Luxemburg’s options of “socialism or barbarism” meet in a concept from right-wing circles: “anarcho-tyranny.”

That’s when the state doesn’t just abdicate its responsibility to protect the safety and property of its citizens, but actually punishes them when they protect them themselves.

If crime lacks consequences, crime becomes fun. Our culture celebrates “subversive” things, things that might offend a 1950s stereotypical square personality.

What’s more subversive than recreational evil?

Fyodor Dostoyevsky in Notes from the Underground propounded the sheer perversity of man, that when, faced with a perfect system of wealth and well-being where goodness is always predictable, man will break it just to prove that he is a free agent rather than a piano-key obeying fixed rules of behaviour.

So, “socialism or barbarism”? We ought to have a good mixture of both.

Neither requires an increased police or prison budget.

First, let’s ameliorate material poverty, mental pain and the spiritual poverty that inclines towards addictive behaviour. This will reduce crime among the truly desperate.

Second, let’s crush crime by giving shopkeepers the legal right to use what we could call “compelling force” to defend their businesses.

This will reduce crime among the recreationally evil.

Better than nothing, and far better than anarcho-tyranny.

Gregory Unger

Cooks Creek